


this is our big bang

by thunderylee



Category: NewS (Band)
Genre: Alternate Universe - Modern Setting, Gen, member love, side koyauchi, side ryo/sawa-eri
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2009-09-28
Updated: 2009-09-28
Packaged: 2019-01-31 07:14:16
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 10,725
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/12676992
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/thunderylee/pseuds/thunderylee
Summary: Nine strangers, nine different ways of life, nine instances of coming together for the sake of each other.





	this is our big bang

**Author's Note:**

> reposted from agck.

> **Prologue – The Birth of NEWS**

Just after the turn of the millennium, even in Japan, the Internet was becoming the big rage. It was an easy way to meet people, learn things, and have fun without leaving the house.

It wasn’t by any coincidence that the nine of them found themselves in the same Internet chat room on a regular basis. Although it was very rare that they were all signed on at the same time, being of different ages and leading different lives. Even the length of time they had been chatting varied.

The theme of the young adult room was Current World Events, but as expected the actual topic would stray. Username after username would sign in and out, but nine in particular became recognizable by the others over the years.

Yamapi had been there the longest, to the point where the moderators had given him authority to “host” the chat room and ban users who were being disruptive. Host_P would go for months at a time without signing on, then return with vivid stories of foreign countries and the worldly knowledge he obtained. The only explanation for his hiatuses that he would give is “work.”

OsakaFknRox, or some variation thereof since Host_P would always make him change his name (asking nicely every time, like it didn’t happen every other day), is the second senior of the nine. He led a normal teen life of parties and girls until he knocked up one of them and was practically forced by both sets of parents to marry her. Now he pretty much hates his life, taking out his frustration on nameless, faceless Internet peons.

Like KingKato. At first Rox (as his username was shortened to due to all of the bans and renaming) respected KingKato for being Osakan, then found out that he was raised in Tokyo and picked on him endlessly. KingKato also had very opinionated views on every topic that was discussed, leading Rox to jump on him even more for being a know-it-all and having elitist font.

Rox found an ally in MisterPriss, who was a “real” Osakan and ganged up on KingKato with him. MisterPriss was more concerned with celebrity gossip than actual current events, but nobody could touch him once he was under Rox’s wing. (It was later discovered that he and Rox were actually friends IRL – Rox had even set up his account for him – but the others couldn’t get mad about it because they all secretly felt sorry for Rox and his hard life.)

FireButa entered the room on accident, but found himself too intrigued by the stimulating conversation to try again for his original destination – the cooking chat room. He became genuinely interested and asked questions, earning a lot of smartass answers from Rox but overlooking them in favor of how nice everyone else was being. KingKato in particular enjoyed explaining things to him, and Host_P made Buta feel welcome while seeming to keep Rox at bay. He didn’t have to come back after that first miss-click, but he did. Over and over.

KusaNoMan and NurseKchan joined around the same time, although they didn’t know each other beforehand. Kusano was a very bright kid with a quick wit, and the others actually thought NurseKchan was a girl until he told them otherwise. K was in school for pre-med, planning to become a nurse instead of a doctor because becoming a nurse took less time and K could help people _faster_. (He became a new favorite target of Rox’s until the latter couldn’t stand seeing his T.T faces anymore.)

MoriMori was quiet for awhile, the name continuously on the screen until one day when Rox got tired of looking at it and forced him out of his shell. The newcomer liked music and America, critiquing singers all over the world in a detailed, constructive way that impressed even Rox. Mori didn’t talk very much, but his words were strong when he did.

Which leaves 133td3v1L, or “Leet,” the resident troublemaker. Newest to the group but with the most memorable entrance, executing a script he had written himself that kicked everybody out of the chat room but him. It took forever for P to get him, only to have the same thing happen by 133t4ng3L. After a couple hours, 133tNyMpH got bored and offered a casual “‘sup,” to which Rox exclaimed “THAT WAS AMAZING HOW DID YOU DO THAT?!!” Leet responded by uncovering that KingKato’s real name was Shige and he was only sixteen instead of twenty like he’d claimed. (Every single one of them was honestly astounded.)

Five months later, the nine of them were discussing the recent reelection of the Prime Minister when Kusano suddenly typed “It’s still early, let’s meet somewhere!”

“What, really?” MisterPriss replied with a :S face.

“It *is* rare that all of us are here at the same time,” P typed in his giant pink Arial Black font. “And the weather is nice.”

“We’re all in Tokyo, right? :D” added Buta.

“Unfortunately,” Rox inputted.

“There’s a coffee shop right by the Hachiko exit in Shibuya,” KingKato typed in his navy-blue smallcaps. “I’m not sure what the name is, but there’s a silhouette of a woman on the sign.”

“You guys aren’t serial killers, right?” Kusano asked seriously. “My mom will ask.”

“I am,” Rox replied. “But I’ll spare you guys.”

“Thanks lol,” Kusano said.

“You’re telling your mom the truth???” KingKato chided.

“I am,” Leet answered. “She’ll be happy I’m leaving the house.”

After an “I’M SO EXCITED!!! :DDDDD” from K and some coercion on Priss and Mori’s parts, the nine agreed to meet at the little coffee shop in Shibuya called Lady~Sing the Blues. Despite having chatted for years, learning personal details about each other that one can only learn by close association, they’d never exchanged pictures or described their appearances. A few hadn’t even revealed their ages.

It turned out that Kusano and Kato were practically identical, down to the spiked-up hair. Leet was almost sixteen, had a face full of baby fat, and was the exact opposite in the daylight than he was behind a computer screen (that is, harmless and completely un-intimidating looking). Rox was four years older but shorter than everyone, making up for his lack of height with his ruthless snark on and offline. K was the tallest, oldest, and most maternal, immediately taking everyone’s drink order and staring at them all in turn to memorize their faces.

In complete contrast of his nickname, Buta was well built and smiled a lot. Mori looked like everyone’s little brother, Priss was tall and gangly (and kind of girly) and kept nervously playing with his hair, and everyone sucked in their air when Yamapi strolled into the shop an hour late because he was actually the renowned teen actor Yamashita Tomohisa and his face was in practically every drama on television.

“I’m sorry I didn’t tell you guys,” was the first thing he said, head low.

Rox snorted. “Everybody lies on the Internet, dude.”

With that, the nine teenagers picked right up where they’d left off in the chatroom, debating music piracy in light of the young American girl who’d gotten busted sharing songs online.

Cup after cup of coffee was consumed as minutes turned into hours, curfews ignored and worried mothers calling, and by the time the sun rose, they were Koyama, Yamapi, Ryo, Massu, Shige, Uchi, Tegoshi, Kusano, and Taka.

“We should do this again,” Massu said gently, his eyes big and his smile wide despite the late/early hour.

Tegoshi yawned from where he’d curled up in Ryo’s lap. “Sounds good to me.”

“This is my only day off,” Ryo told them. “That is, _today_. Sunday. I can already hear my wife bitching about me being out all night.”

“Next time bring your kid,” Yamapi suggested. “I won’t mind.”

“Me neither,” Koyama was quick to agree, bouncing a little and looking like he was withholding his excitement.

“Same time next week?” Shige inquired, pulling out his planner to schedule it in, and the others nodded.

And so it happened, the nine of them meeting at the little coffee shop week after week, despite busy school and work schedules. Even if it was just for an hour, they met and discussed what was going on in the world, just like they were in the chat room instead of sitting together in reality.

After a couple months, Koyama insisted that they needed a group name, which is when they all admitted to calling it “NEWS” just like the name of the chat room. “I’m going to NEWS!” the younger ones would tell their moms, Ryo would tell his wife, and Kei would tell his cat.

The name stuck.

Over the next few years, they lessened in numbers. Taka had always been more focused on music and wanted to start a band with some school friends, which limited his free time. Before NEWS had even been around for a whole year, he stopped attending their meetings. The next year, Uchi disappeared with no trace, leaving behind a Ryo who was even more irritable than normal. Finally, just after the first of the year, Kusano broke the news that his parents were moving him to New York City.

“It’s just the six of us now,” Yamapi said to the remaining members as they lounged on the coffee shop’s retro furniture, which seemed much too empty right then.

The phrase “famous last words” rang true; Yamapi was offered a part that he couldn’t refuse and spent the rest of the year in Canada filming and promoting a movie. By this point NEWS had evolved into the blogging era and Yamapi updated as much as he could, but the other members agreed not to meet until they could all be together.

New Year’s was quite a reunion. Koyama cried as much as Ryo’s daughter Emiko, who was now four years old and just as feisty as her daddy. She was also a big sister to Keiji, whom Koyama delivered with his own hands in the backseat of a cab when the tiny baby boy couldn’t wait until they got to the hospital. Once there, while his wife was still drugged, Ryo named him after Koyama.

The following year, Koyama started nursing school while Shige was accepted into the law program at Aoyama. Tegoshi took online psychology courses just so he could continue to live at home and cause trouble on the Internet all day, and Massu joined the firefighters and moved in with one of his teammates. Across the ocean, Kusano tried to keep up with their blogs but never had time to set one up for himself.

Uchi still remained MIA.

In the following years after their reunion, so many things changed in their everyday lives but one thing remained the same for the six who stayed in Tokyo – every Saturday at four in the afternoon, come hell or high water, they would meet at Lady~Sings the Blues in Shibuya.

These are their stories. Of life, of love, and – most of all – of friendship.

> **Ryo’s Story – Movin’ Out**

Ryo has been working for Erika’s father’s company ever since he was shoved down the aisle with her. He is pretty much a glorified bitch boy, lots of “yes sir,” “no sir,” kissing ass, and bowing. Then he comes home and gets ordered around the house as well. He has no control over his money, his children, or his life.

It’s due to his upbringing that he just takes it, because growing up in the lesser-quality areas of Osaka has him grateful for the opportunity to _be someone_. Not that he’s being much of anyone by following orders all day, but at least he can provide a nice home for his family.

And he could still see Uchi. It’s a little-known secret that part of the reason he married Erika – the part that didn’t have to do with money and stability – was to follow his childhood best friend whose mother was transferred to Tokyo while they were still in school. As much as Ryo loved Osaka, without Uchi there it wasn’t nearly as awesome.

At the time, marrying Erika and working for her father seemed like the chance of a lifetime, to be an adult despite his young age and make something of himself. To not be just another teen dad who works two jobs just to be able to pay child support for a kid he only gets to see a few hours every other weekend.

Faced with that alternative, Ryo has sucked it up and played the role of husband and father that has been decided for him. Regardless of his unhappiness, he can’t bring himself to regret his decision.

Not when his daughter’s face grins up at him every night. Daddy’s little mistake, whom he loves more than life, with the only competition being her little brother. In an ideal world, it would just be the three of them, living peacefully without any evil bitches and their controlling families getting in the way.

In an ideal world, he wouldn’t have to wear a suit every day of the week to fetch his father-in-law coffee. It puts food on the table and clothes on his kids’ backs, and he would go on to say that it puts a roof over their heads too if their house hadn’t been a wedding present from Mama and Papa Sawajiri.

“You’re an ungrateful shit,” Erika tells him, and he’s starting to believe it.

“She’s brainwashing you,” Uchi would always say.

Uchi, who’s not here anymore.

It takes a while for him to open up about it more than just referring to Erika as “my bitch wife,” and when he does his words lay upon the ears of men who are still young and don’t understand.

“Why don’t you just leave?” Tegoshi says, still curled up in his lap despite being bigger than him.

Ryo tries to explain that it’s not that easy, particularly when there are children involved, and then Koyama chimes in.

“It’s not good for the kids to grow up in that kind of environment.”

He’s right, and Ryo gradually realizes that he has no excuses left to make. Five years of hell and he can’t take a minute more, giving Erika divorce papers and options on their anniversary.

Erika has always been dramatic, and this is no exception. Before he even has the words out, she starts throwing things and Ryo has to physically restrain her to calm her down. It’s during that time when she admits that she never loved him, she’s been seeing someone on the side for years, and Keiji might not actually be his son.

After that, Ryo doesn’t have any guilt about leaving. Predictably he’s let go from the Sawajiri company and miraculously finds a full-time opening working at a grocery store, just like he had as a kid. He has to pull double shifts in the meat and produce departments to pay his rent and child support, but somehow it doesn’t seem as bad as when he’d dreaded it years ago.

Meanwhile, Erika and the kids move in with Erika’s new boyfriend Takashiro. The divorce is nasty and Ryo’s lucky to be awarded any kind of custody, which is probably only because Erika is used to her free time and has no problem agreeing to visitation every weekend. It’s the one time he’s been thankful to have married such a conceited bitch.

He’s overworked and underpaid, his weekends occupied by his kids even if he has to work, but he still clears his schedule for that hour on Saturday because NEWS is what gets him through this, just like they have from the beginning.

> **Massu’s Story – Through the Fire**

Massu’s never been book smart, bad at memorization and tests but great at common sense and acting fast. Because of this he went straight into the firefighter’s academy after school, studying and training hard so that he could put his skills to use and make his parents proud. It was there that he met Nakamaru, who is now his roommate and partner on the team.

Massu prides himself on every save, regardless of whether it’s human or animal, and there have only been a few instances where he hasn’t been able to save them.

Those are the ones that hit him the hardest. To this day he has trouble sleeping at night, often joining Nakamaru in the kitchen for tea at three a.m. because his failures would be replaying behind his eyes, things he could have done differently or decisions that could have been made faster.

Normally they are Nakamaru’s failures too, and bearing the burden of them together helps keep them both sane enough to carry on, using each other as support and vowing to do better next time. As much as Massu loves his accidental Internet friends, considers himself lucky for clicking the wrong link all of those years ago, there’s no way they could possibly understand what goes through his mind when he risks his life every day to save others, when he _doesn’t_ end up saving them.

And then it happens to Nakamaru.

They’re in a warehouse that has suddenly caught fire, searching for survivors, and upon finding it empty they turn to retreat. That’s when Massu sees the gas tank and yells, running in the opposite direction.

He assumes that Nakamaru will follow.

When he doesn’t, Massu falls to his knees helplessly as the warehouse blows up, praying to whoever will listen that Nakamaru went out another way and is safely unconscious somewhere.

Hours later, they don’t find him. The other firefighters have to pry Massu away from the scene, ordering him to stay at home until they find the body.

Of course, Massu blames himself. He tries to opt out of a NEWS meeting but, well, they’re _NEWS_ and they already heard all about what happened. Massu is in no condition to be sociable but he can’t just sit at home – where everything reminds him of Nakamaru – so reluctantly he goes, trying his best to contain himself and not blow up.

He does anyway. Tegoshi and Koyama are the ones to comfort him with hugs, while Ryo and Yamapi put their feet down when Massu starts sputtering nonsense about quitting.

There is a lot of going back and forth, Massu saying that he should have done more while the others insisted that he did all he could, and they’re still there when Massu’s phone rings.

It’s Nakamaru and he’s alive.

Massu runs faster than ever before, the others (except Ryo, who has his kids) struggling to keep up as they head towards the hospital up the street, where Massu flashes his badge and is automatically led to the outpatient area where Nakamaru stands grinning under his big nose, which is slightly charred.

He was buried alive but unconscious enough to live through it, his flame-retardant uniform and oxygen tank doing their jobs. A strong metal frame had pinned him to the ground and kept all larger and heavier objects from crushing him.

Massu cries rivers of tears and they share a very manly hug right there in front of everyone. But Massu still doesn’t know if he can handle it, at least until they leisurely walk back down the street and see flames sprouting from the coffee shop.

Ryo’s outside with Keiji, but they’re both frantically wailing about Emi still being inside. She went to the bathroom and Ryo couldn’t get to her once the fire started. He’s an absolute mess and Keiji’s crying non-stop, which Tegoshi and Koyama step in to control while Massu stares hard at the raging fire.

Instantly Nakamaru’s thrusting his gear at him. “I’m under orders to rest,” he says firmly. “But I know you’re going to go in anyway, so you may as well be safe.”

While the other firemen are just pulling up, Massu’s already suited and pushing his way inside the shop. He hears the little girl screaming and finds her trapped in the corner, instantly scooping her up in his arms and protecting her from the flames as he runs back out.

All while holding his breath.

Ryo’s face relaxes and he trips over himself as he runs to his daughter, half holding onto her and half crying on Massu, both of whom are covered in soot and very warm.

Back to the hospital they go, where Emi is checked out and declared okay, just a little shaken up. She thanks Massu profusely, and even Erika expresses her gratitude (despite blaming Ryo for the entire thing).

Ryo looks dead into Massu’s eyes and says, “If you ever quit, that means my little girl’s life means nothing to you, and I’ll kick your ass.”

It’s a good enough reason for Massu.

> **Yamapi’s Story – Father’s Day**

Yamapi’s been famous for years, since the tender age of eleven when he was discovered by his current agency and cast as the child lead in what would become the drama of the year. For half of his life he’s turned his head this way, made that expression, and said – with feeling – the words that were written for him.

Somewhere along the line, he lost track of who he was.

Everything he does, he does it for his family. His mother and younger sister, who rely on him to help keep a roof over their heads. Because his real father wasn’t man enough to do that himself. Yamapi tolerates the bright lights and barked orders and answers the same questions over and over again for them, for his fans who pay his salary.

Yama-mama insisted that he go to college, to not give his father the satisfaction of having an uneducated son. So Yamapi finished high school and was accepted to Meiji, despite his hectic career and busy schedule. It’s hard to balance it all, but his weekly NEWS meetings make it easier – give him a little break from the spotlight, an hour a week where he’s a normal person.

At the time this story takes place, Yamapi’s at the peak of his career. He’s done an English-speaking movie (never mind that he doesn’t actually speak English), several popular dramas, and – let’s face it – he grew up into an incredibly attractive man whom magazines want to take pictures of.

It was in one of these magazines that Aoki found him, recognized the name and tracked him down. He didn’t watch TV but saw the magazine laying around, the man on the cover with features and eyes similar to his own.

His only son whom he abandoned all those years ago.

He must be rich now, Aoki thinks, and he could certainly use the money. Yamapi doesn’t recognize him when the man approaches him on the street, just thinks he’s a fan, since Aoki has looked worse for wear since the last time he saw him. He freezes when Aoki introduces himself, asks if they can have a cup of coffee. Mechanically Yamapi follows him because he doesn’t know what else to do.

After a long while of beating around the bush, Aoki confesses that he’s dying. There’s an operation to save him, but he can’t afford it. That’s when Yamapi knows that he was sought out for money and tries to leave, but stops at Aoki’s guilt trips. He didn’t want to leave, he claims. He had to. Yamapi’s mother had forced him to-

And Yamapi doesn’t hear any more lies after he punches his biological sperm donor in the face.

He doesn’t say anything about it until later on when Koyama mentions that his parents are divorced, which piques Yamapi’s attention. He cryptically asks questions and finds out that Koyama’s father is still in the picture, just not living with them, and there’s really no long-term emotional damage to Koyama or his older sister.

Of course Koyama pries out of Yamapi what’s really bothering him, and of course he goes snooping around the hospital his school is affiliated with. There is in fact an Aoki in the terminal illness ward, and everything he had said about his medical condition was true. He can’t have the operation because he doesn’t have medical insurance, being an unemployed bum and all.

Yamapi has a hard decision to make, one which takes the support of all of his friends. None of them tell him what to do, as much as he may yell at them to do just that, claiming that he needs to do what he feels is right, not necessarily what _is_ right.

Ryo is understandably indifferent to the whole thing, having just left his wife and struggling to balance work and his kids. It’s that understanding that finally makes up Yamapi’s mind, because Aoki could have still been a father even though he wasn’t married to his mother anymore. He just chose not to.

When he shows up at the hospital to give Aoki his decision, he learns that the older man had dropped dead of an aneurysm that morning.

Yamapi never tells his mother and sister.

> **Shige’s Story – Objection is Best Served Hot**

At nineteen, Shige feels like his entire life has been planned for him – university preparatory high school, pre-law, even his extracurricular activities were centered around his future as yet another Kato family lawyer. He doesn’t know what it’s like to play as a child or hang out with friends as a teenager – NEWS has been his only non-school activity, and only because his father liked the idea of his son willingly being interested in worldly events.

For that hour a week Shige can relax and not be anyone but himself – he’s not even sure he knew who _he_ was before he interacted with these other guys, these _strangers_ who somehow managed to bring out qualities in himself that his classmates couldn’t. He’s always been the best and ignored those who thought otherwise, but the real world (and the Internet by proxy) is not the same as school and that’s one of the most important life lessons one can ever be taught.

He looks at the others with jealous eyes, wishing he could be as carefree as Tegoshi, as pampered as Yamapi, as determined as Massu or as strong as Ryo. He even wishes he could be sensitive like Koyama, because he’s been someone else so long that he doesn’t have his own feelings anymore.

Finally, he breaks. When he gets bad marks on his second year finals, his father assumes that it’s because of NEWS and forbids him to go. That is immediately followed by a dramatic father/son argument where Shige shows his true colors and says things that he didn’t know he felt until they were coming out of his mouth.

“Either you go back to school or you are not welcome in this house,” Shige’s father tells him.

Shige packs his bags and heads to Koyama’s place, offering to help in the ramen shop for a couch to sleep on. Koya-mama is fine with this arrangement and fusses over Shige in a way the younger man hasn’t experienced before, making him even more jealous of Koyama and the doting mother that he never had.

Koyama of course makes Shige sleep in his bed, just as bad as his own mother when it comes to taking care of Shige and trying to make him happy. Still a nursing student, Koyama is gone a lot, leaving Shige feeling lonely even when he is working in the shop.

This isn’t what he wants either. He has attacks of selfishness and doesn’t talk to anyone until he’s been quiet (and a bum) for a few weeks, when Ryo finally calls him on it.

“Stop feeling so sorry for yourself,” he says. “My life sucks more than yours does and I still have a smile on my face.” He grins for effect.

Shige considers this, his eyes roaming around the coffee shop until he sees a Help Wanted sign. He’s always respected those who work in the customer service industry, doing their best to make other people happy (like Koyama), and this place has certainly kept him happy for the past four years.

“Too bad it’s so far,” Koyama says guiltily, following Shige’s eyes. “The commute wouldn’t be worth the pay, I’d think.” He directs his gaze downwards. “I’m sorry I live the farthest from here.”

“It’s oka-” Shige starts to reply, chalking it up to just another fantasy that won’t come true, when Ryo snaps at him again.

“I live around the corner and I could certainly use the help,” he says in a forced voice that is obviously covering up his hope. “They don’t let me keep the kids overnight anyway, so they won’t bother you for more than a couple hours at a time.”

“They wouldn’t bother me,” Shige says slowly, his heart pounding at the thought of this new life.

“Then it’s decided,” Ryo announces, and Shige’s a little dazed as he walks up to the counter and asks for an application.

Shige moves in and they bicker a lot, but when Ryo can afford to lose some hours and get more sleep, he says something to Shige that the other hasn’t really deserved before now: “Thank you.”

> **Koyama’s Story – Somebody’s Baby**

It’s that time, midway through his degree program, where Koyama needs to decide what field of medicine he wants to go into so that his last year can be devoted to that specialty. His class is rotated around the affiliated hospital to get the feel of the different departments, and while Koyama knows exactly what he wants to do – has known since he was a small child – he’s now learning that his heart can’t handle it.

His first day in the NICU (Newborn Intensive Care Unit), he loses a tiny life. Not by his hands – it was inevitable due to a birth defect – but it still hurts just as badly. He cries for hours and ends up leaving early, locking himself in his room with his kitty and cursing the cruelty of this world. His instructor gently suggests that he picks another first choice, maybe radiology or somewhere that has a low fatality rate.

The actual nursery, of course, is fully staffed. There’s always hope for another hospital, perhaps one that’s closer to home, but he has to start out somewhere. Even if he’s already stocked up on Disney-patterned scrubs.

Determined to grow a tough skin, Koyama insists on discussing painful events – murders and the like – at the next NEWS meeting. He still sheds tears of sympathy for the victims and their families, but after a couple weeks of hearing about it, he becomes desensitized to the words.

“Words are much different than a life in your hands,” Massu points out knowingly.

Koyama remembers when he delivered Keiji and the feeling it brought him. As a nurse he wouldn’t be doing the actual delivery, but being involved with the process and watching new lives be born every day is what he’s dreamed of for years, what he thinks his whole purpose in life is.

He approaches his instructor with his head held high and says with all his heart that he will do his best if given another chance. Reluctantly, she agrees, and Koyama’s back in the NICU the next week. It takes a lot of deep breaths, even more tissues, and the support of his friends to handle the many deaths, but he does everything he’s told and earns high praise from the other doctors and nurses in the unit.

As for the little lives he helps save, Koyama feels partially responsible for every one. He hopes they grow up to be good adults, productive members of society, people their parents can be proud of. Because other babies didn’t get that same chance.

On his last day in the rotation, a baby is brought in by itself. It’s barely a day old and was found in a dumpster behind a high school. One of the nurses tells Koyama that it happens all the time, much to his disgust, and there are tears in his eyes as he watches the doctor examine the tiny boy and declare him just a little malnourished. When Koyama’s face lights up at the miracle, the doctor assigns the baby to him.

Koyama takes great pride in cleaning up the baby and feeding him until his skin has color again. He’s of normal size with a healthy amount of hair and big brown eyes; he can’t imagine why someone would just toss away a beautiful life like this. This child could grow up to be the next Prime Minister, maybe someone who changes history. The scientist who discovers the cure to cancer, or even just a teacher who encourages his students to do their best. Who is this unfit mother to take this chance away from him like this?

His assignment is technically over when his shift ends, but Koyama spends the weekend staking out the high school and questioning students in hopes of finding the mother. Nobody recalls anyone who looked pregnant, so he comes to the conclusion that it must have just been a woman passing by. None of the nearby patrons remember any screaming or labor sounds either; Koyama is at a loss.

The next week he’s in a different department, a much less stressful one, but on his breaks he sprints to the nursery to see the abandoned baby. The other nurses call it ‘his’ baby, which makes him grin until he finds out that there are orphanage arrangements being made.

It’s the first time that he actually considers taking the child home. As his own. Adoption is frowned upon in Japan but Koyama can’t bear the thought of this baby growing up unloved when he most definitely is. He can’t save them all, as his mother constantly tells him, but he can certainly save this one.

With Shige’s help, he looks into it and can already tell that he doesn’t qualify. He’s so young, he still lives with his mother, and he doesn’t have a wife or any medical condition that would prevent him from procreating on his own. Even Shige the half-lawyer advises him that it’s a lost cause, but that doesn’t stop Koyama from trying, because the least he can do for this little boy is try.

The courts are so surprised at his determination that they actually consider it, hearing from Koyama’s colleagues and friends who all state that he would be the best father regardless of the circumstances. It isn’t until Koya-mama tells them how responsible and caring her son is, and offers her assistance until Koyama finishes school and gets his own place, that the judges finally agree to give Koyama a probationary custody.

He names him Kiyoshi 生世士 – life, world, gentleman.

> **Uchi’s Story – Mr. Right Now**

While Uchi has a damn good excuse for leaving, there’s nothing that excuses him from not telling his friends. The others he could get away with – they’re just Internet friends, after all – but not Ryo. Ryo he’s known since they were kids, he was the best man at Ryo’s shotgun wedding, he was there for all of the times Ryo needed to vent and all of the weekends Ryo was stuck with his kid when other people his age were out still _being_ kids.

Uchi tries to lie and tell himself that it’s a good thing he left, because maybe if he’d stuck around Ryo would have stayed with Erika and continued hating his life, but even he knows that’s not true. If he _hadn’t_ left, maybe Ryo wouldn’t have to go through this on his own.

The guilt keeps him from fessing up, keeps him anonymously checking Ryo’s blog to make sure he’s okay. Ryo locks a lot of posts, but he still leaves some public ones about the collective stupidity of the government and the world as a whole, which leaves Uchi feeling relieved. If Ryo can still complain, the earth is still turning like normal. There’s about a nine-month span of time where he doesn’t post, and Uchi’s about to pull his hair out from worry until he sees Shige mention a new roommate.

Somehow, Uchi thinks that Shige and Ryo complement each other.

The actual reason Uchi left was incredibly stupid. Even _he_ knows that it’s stupid; he knew it at the time. Normally he’d laugh if he was stopped in the middle of the street by a man who claimed to be recruiting foreign models, but this particular man happened to have good timing. Uchi was itching to leave this place, to get as far away from the one person who makes him question himself more than anyone has before.

Not Ryo, Koyama. It started back when they all thought NurseKchan was a girl; even after they knew for sure, Uchi couldn’t quite let go of the image – he’s always had a _thing_ for nurses. When they met he thought that it would end there, Koyama being very much a man with masculine features who was just as tall as Uchi was, but if anything the feeling got stronger.

That’s when Uchi knew that this wasn’t just a fetish. He actually _liked_ Koyama, liked him for who he was and how he felt. He liked that Koyama was sensitive and sympathetic despite the teasing, how he always remembered everyone’s birthdays and covered the poor students when they were between allowances. How he made it a point to smile, genuinely, even when he was tired from studying, and how he studied his hardest to get into nursing school even though he’s not very good at tests.

If Uchi were ever hurt, Koyama would be the only one he wants to fix him.

Uchi lived with these feelings for a long time before they started to consume him. He was not a stereotype; he was not a statistic. He could barely stand to look at Koyama, whose face constantly taunted him, “what if?”

When the man approached him on the street, “what might have been” seemed like a much better nightmare.

Uchi has always been naturally beautiful, porcelain skin and silky hair; everyone loved him. He promoted all kinds of products, things he didn’t even know what they were, and people bought them because of his face. He traveled to Europe and America and Russia, modeling clothes and filming cologne ads.

And fucking everyone in his path. Male, female, it didn’t matter in this industry. He learned a lot and felt less, each meaningless lay leaving him a little more desensitized than before. He drank just enough to forget and did a lot of things he regrets. The life of the rich and famous seemed like a dream he will one day wake up from.

Finally he ends up back in Japan, in demand from some fragrance manufacturer that wants to pay him to advertise only for them. Truth be told, Uchi misses his mother and Japanese food, but his guilt starts to creep up once again when he’s riding through Shibuya and sees the familiar faces through the tinted coffee shop window.

Not only does Ryo have a toddler bouncing in his lap, Koyama has a bundle in his arms and it makes Uchi nearly strain his neck to see out the back windshield of the limo as their figures slowly get smaller.

He searches Koyama’s blog on his phone and sees no wedding announcement. Or baby announcement, come to think of it. Koyama doesn’t usually post locked but maybe he did this time, maybe it’s too personal for the world to see. For Uchi to see.

It’s his own fault, he berates himself. He’s the one who left.

A week later he feels like a stalker, watching them through the window while standing in the snow. He feels like a cliché, a stereotype, a statistic – right back where he left three and a half years ago.

“Well I’ll be damned,” a female voice cuts through his thoughts. “And here I thought that that piece of shit had left me for you.”

He cringes at the sound of her voice, barely turning his head to see Erika looking just as perfect as always with two bundled-up little people with her, one in her arms and one holding onto her hand. “Erika,” he says gruffly. “Somehow I didn’t think you’d be the first to find out I was back.”

“I didn’t even know you left,” she tells him briskly. “And I really don’t care. Take the kids to Ryo, will you? Then I won’t have to look at him.”

The little boy is immediately thrust into Uchi’s arms while the little girl just looks at him in confusion. “You don’t remember me, do you?” he asks her gently.

She shakes her head but obediently heads towards the front door of the shop.

He can’t just not follow. Ryo would certainly be worried when there’s only one child flocking towards him. And Erika has disappeared without a trace, which has Uchi rolling his eyes at the irony.

The toddler in his arms, the miniature Ryo gurgles happily and loudly declares, “Mama!” which has Uchi laughing and shaking his head as he reluctantly ducks into the coffee shop before either one of them catch a cold.

The conversation ceases, six pairs of eyes on him while Emiko crawls obliviously into her father’s lap (next to Tegoshi) and Koyama actually tears his attention away from the sleeping bundle in his arms.

Finally Yamapi breaks the ice. “Erika got prettier, didn’t she?”

There’s comfortable laughter, hugs, and a lot of tears (mostly from Koyama). Uchi’s surprised at how easily he’s forgiven, even after Ryo’s son – Keiji, he learns – has been put down and is no longer protecting him from physical harm.

“Who’s this?” Uchi asks carefully, peeking into Koyama’s arms. “Did you get married?”

“I adopted,” he says quietly, his voice holding absolutely no shame as he speaks the words. “His name is Kiyoshi.”

“He doesn’t have a mother?” Uchi asks worriedly; he can’t imagine life without a mother.

Koyama shakes his head. “He has a grandmother who spoils him, though.”

That’s still not good enough, and Ryo laughs at Uchi’s pout. “You haven’t changed a bit.”

Uchi can’t even bring himself to be offended. “Can I hold him?”

Koyama looks apprehensive but eventually hands over his burden, eyes like a hawk on Uchi’s arm placement and looking ready to snatch back the baby at any given second.

“Mama!” Keiji declares again, and everyone laughs.

He makes it until the meeting is over before Ryo confronts him, the two of them remaining in the coffee shop and waiting for Erika to come back for the kids. Uchi tells him half of the truth, about the modeling offer and the traveling and even the girls; it’s a credit to how much they’ve grown up that those kinds of things don’t impress Ryo anymore.

“You could have told me,” Ryo says, the words like ice to Uchi’s heart.

“That’s not all,” Uchi replies, staring longingly at the seat Koyama had just vacated.

Ryo follows his eyes and doesn’t ask, doesn’t need to. “What scent are you promoting now?” he asks instead, like the previous conversation hadn’t happened.

Uchi tells him, and Ryo snorts. “That one stinks.”

On New Year’s Eve, the newly seven-member NEWS get together for an impromptu meeting in Yamapi’s spacious penthouse, complete with all applicable children which may or may not include Yamapi’s playboy roommate Jin. Things get loud and while Ryo’s kids are used to the screaming, Koyama discreetly takes Kiyoshi into one of the guest bedrooms and lies down with him.

Seeing an opportunity, Uchi decides to gather his courage and follow him. It feels like a previous life when he drank to be someone else and doesn’t feel the need to do that tonight, the cup in his hands containing water as he lingers at the cracked door. He feels Ryo’s eyes on him and somehow it’s encouraging, giving him the strength to push the door open and nod apologetically at Koyama’s rushed glance of concern.

“I want to tell you something,” Uchi whispers, and for once Koyama doesn’t reply. From the one who usually can’t keep his mouth shut this is odd behavior, but Uchi figures that Koyama’s grown up too and right now his priorities lay with this little boy’s peace.

He tells him anyway, starting from the very beginning up until this very moment. The words come out like they’re rehearsed and maybe they are, the speech that has been unconsciously saved in the back of his mind in case he ever had the chance to say it. He keeps talking and talking and doesn’t even know what he’s saying anymore, trips over his words while Koyama’s expression remains unchanged and Uchi wonders if a giant hole could open in the floor and please swallow him up.

Eventually there’s no more to say and Uchi just stops talking. He takes in a much-needed breath and feels lighter; even though the outcome may not be good, at least he got all of that off his chest and is amazed at how easy it is to move without carrying all of that emotional weight.

“You won’t know unless you try.”

The words pierce through Uchi’s internal celebration and he turns towards the other, actually looks at him – into his eyes – as he processes the information. “You’re -?”

“I don’t know what I am,” Koyama says matter-of-factly, his eyes a little shiny. “Maybe together we could figure it out.”

It’s the best idea Uchi’s ever heard, and he doesn’t hesitate as he leans over the sleeping baby and presses his lips gently to Koyama’s.

When he kisses back, the wait seems worth it.

> **Tegoshi’s Story – Hard Candy**

Tegoshi has the ideal life; with online classes and parents who spoil him, he can sleep whenever he wants and do whatever he pleases. After seeing what happened to Shige, the last thing he wants to do is quit school. In fact, he likes school. His psychology courses enable him to get inside people’s heads and manipulate them, kind of like hacking into a computer.

The two go hand in hand sometimes.

He goes a long time without being outside, though. He has an excellent metabolism and manages not to gain weight, but he’s incredibly lazy and usually doesn’t leave the house except to go to NEWS meetings. He tells everyone he’s studying but he’s really wrecking havoc on the Internet, pissing off horny guys trying to get laid in a chat room.

Secretly, though, he wishes his life were more than this. Wishes that he was a productive member of society like the others. He’ll always be a kid while he lives in his parents’ basement, after all. He needs to become a man.

All he could do was offer support when Ryo left his wife, when Massu thought he lost his best friend, when Yamapi found his biological father, when Shige quit law school, when Koyama was struggling to adopt Kiyoshi, even when Uchi came back and was fighting his own inner demons. Tegoshi doesn’t need a class to be insightful, just the confidence to act on his intuition.

Above all else, confidence is something he has by the epic ton.

There’s something out there for him, he just knows it. He _feels_ it, the grown man who bullshits essays and pisses off Internet losers while eating his mom’s home cooking every night is just biding his time, waiting for opportunity to come knock on his proverbial door.

For anyone else this would be wishful thinking, but for Tegoshi it was pure fact. To him it’s just common sense – someone who constantly follows his heart has to be led to his fate eventually.

It happens around Valentine’s Day. While Yamapi’s out filming a special romance SP, Ryo, Shige, and Massu are working hard, and Koyama and Uchi are making googly eyes at each other, Tegoshi gets bored in a celebrity gossip chat room and runs a harmless scan on the other patrons. He finds one that catches his eye – a forty-year-old man in a room specifically for teenagers, chatting up a girl who has clearly stated that she’s fourteen.

Immediately Tegoshi jumps into action, running his location programs and creating a new screen name. SexyTYAngel is sixteen and _loves_ older men, and almost immediately this guy is in his PM box.

After some nauseating flirting, they set up a meeting for the next weekend, Valentine’s Day, and Tegoshi’s adrenaline runs hot. He brings it up at the next NEWS meeting, expecting the others to be as excited as he is at the possibility of a pervert capture, but it turns out that the older members of the group aren’t so approving.

“No offense, but you’re not the strongest,” Massu tells him bluntly. “What if he’s stronger than you?”

Shige takes a different approach. “No _way_ you could pass for a high-school girl.”

It becomes a challenge, the seven of them meeting earlier the following Saturday to prepare for the inevitable. Uchi is excited to do Tegoshi’s hair and makeup to make him look like a real girl, although even Shige has to admit that he really doesn’t need the help once he’s in Yamapi’s sister’s old uniform. Still not in favor of this one bit but knowing that Tegoshi will do what he wants anyway, Ryo and Massu plan to stakeout the meeting place _just in case_.

It’s fun playing the innocent little girl until the pedo makes his move, having taken “Yuuko” back to his house and fed him the date rape drug. The last thing Tegoshi sees before he loses consciousness is Ryo breaking through a window and punching the guy in the face.

When he comes to, he’s at the police station facing a row of concerned officers as well as a few in suits. Instantly Tegoshi hones in on the suits, recognizing them as special investigation detectives. “I’m not in trouble, am I?” he asks groggily

Of course he’s not in trouble. The detectives want to know how Tegoshi knew that the guy was a child molester.

So Tegoshi tells them. Between his psychology courses and his hacking, he found enough evidence to make an educated judgment and act upon it. The suits keep raising their eyebrows until they’re almost to their hairlines, amazed that a twenty-one-year-old kid with no official training could do more than seniors with security clearance and years of experience.

“Kid, how would you like to join our side?” one of the detectives asks.

Tegoshi scrunches up his face in thought, eyes still made up brightly with his wig only a little crooked. “Can I finish school first?”

Nobody is surprised when Tegoshi’s “part-time work” is continuing to hunt down information on people, now with permission.

> **Kusano’s Story – Lost and Found**

He’s been gone for so long that he barely speaks Japanese anymore, three years of studying and partying in New York City while his parents translate for Asian dignitaries.

He’s tried to keep up with his Japanese friends, mostly the other members of NEWS, but he’s been so busy that he hardly gets a chance to use his computer for anything other than schoolwork. He’s a general business major but it’s still a lot of work, accounting and computer programs and marketing classes.

Truth be told, though, he really misses Japan. America is like a fun vacation, but it gets kind of old when he has to live here. Between school and buddies and working part-time at a convenience store, it feels like he’s lost touch with more than just the other members of NEWS – it’s been three years since he last saw the bubbly, outgoing Kusano Hironori as well.

First it was the language barrier that kept him quiet, although the habit stuck even after he was fluent. His previous self would laugh at him now, maybe kick him in the ass and tell him not to be such a dud. He smiles at the thought, the facial muscles stinging from nonuse.

_No matter what, I hope you’re still smiling_ , Yamapi writes to him every week. The emails piled up for the longest time, passed over in favor of assignments and texts from potential girlfriends, all-night crams or raves. Even after a year he couldn’t bear to delete them, just set his email to automatically forward to a new folder so that he wouldn’t have to see them, be tempted by his past.

If there’s one thing that can be said for Yamapi, it’s that he works best with a schedule. He has a Jweb he updates for his fans, his personal blog for his friends and family, and his weekly email to Kusano. Kusano imagines that it’s written in his schedule somewhere between dinner and bathing on Sunday nights, because they’re always waiting for him on _his_ Sunday morning (or afternoon) when he rolls out of bed.

“My older brother,” he tells his dormmate. “He worries.”

He’s not surprised when it doesn’t feel like a lie.

What is surprising is that even the quiet Kusano who keeps to himself somehow manages to be popular on campus. With the girls he figures it’s the whole foreign mysterious thing, but he doesn’t understand the guys. His dormmate is a very eclectic art major with questionable sexuality and some type of relationship with nearly everyone in New York City. He knows the places to go and things to do, movies to see and bands to listen to, and he brings Kusano with him for every one.

He can’t really say it’s against his will, because if he’s being honest with himself he’s near desperate for social interaction by the time he gets to university. And business classes really aren’t that hard. It’s always been easy for Kusano to learn and retain information, even if he was just half-listening in lecture or copied his homework from the guy down the hall.

The A’s keep coming and Kusano’s parents couldn’t be prouder, but each passing grade meant that he was one term closer to being like everyone else. He thinks of Ryo, putting on a suit every day to be bossed around and smiling through it to pay the bills. He thinks of Shige, whose future since birth consisted of putting on a suit to argue technicalities and find loopholes in the law.

At the time he doesn’t know what became of them, because he hasn’t been reading Yamapi’s emails, but he does know that neither of them are fit for that kind of passive life.

And neither is he.

The girls are the worst part, constantly throwing themselves at him because he’s exotic to them and American college girls are kind of slutty. In the beginning he tried to resist them, but eventually the effort became too much and he just let them have their way. It wasn’t any big sacrifice on his part, really. If anything, they offered him a temporary distraction from his destined future.

Lucky for him, slutty American college girls don’t expect you to call them after they leave in the morning. No strings, no obligation. Not even his male acquaintances were forever, never making plans in advance regardless of whether it was next month or next weekend.

“There’s a party down in Dave’s room Saturday night,” his dormmate would tell him, casually. “His sister will be there and she is _such_ a _whore_.”

If Kusano doesn’t have anything better to do Saturday night, he goes. Bangs Dave’s sister, the whore, and pretends to be asleep when she does the walk of shame in the morning. Or maybe he does her in Dave’s room while Dave’s passed out in his own bed, or outside on the air conditioner behind the science building.

It doesn’t matter where, or who – sex is just another short-term high, like getting trashed or smoking herb. A drug to make him feel like someone else for awhile, to forget his real life.

Enjoying it while it lasts.

Kusano nods to himself as he sits in front of his laptop, scrolling through his gig of porn and not seeing anything but his dim future. His Effective Management assignment remains open in another window with no intention of being typed. That class is eighty-percent tests anyway, he’ll still be able to pass without turning in any homework.

Even if he becomes a manager, he muses, he won’t be happy. He’s not the kind of guy who gets off on telling other people what to do; he’d be more concerned about taking the blame if they fail.

“Yo, Ku _sa_ no,” Bryan the Social Butterfly mispronounces his name for the second year in a row, poking his head in their room that he barely steps foot in. “There are these crazy Asian bitches from Jersey down in the lobby, they might be your kind. You interested?”

Kusano rolls his eyes. “If I wanted Asian girls, I’d go back to Japan,” he says coolly.

Bryan laughs and snaps his fingers. “Oh, shit!” he cries out, then flashes the peace sign. “Catch you later.”

“‘Later,” Kusano replies distractedly, his eyes roaming towards the 111 emails in his P folder. The program doesn’t tell him how many there are because he rigged it to treat them like they were already read, but Kusano knows. He’s counted every week since he left, since he started moving the messages and silently adding one more each Sunday.

It occurs to him that it’s kind of pretentious to expect someone to keep emailing him when he hasn’t replied back for three years. Questioning himself for yet another reason, he finally clicks on the folder and anxiously waits for it to load.

_111 read messages_.

Kusano lets out a breath he hadn’t known he’d been holding, watches as the emails populate the screen.

Without another thought, he begins to read.

He reads in-between packing, what few belongings he has. He reads between writing three letters – one to his parents, another to his dean, and the last one to his boss.

Bryan, Dave, and the others probably wouldn’t notice he’s gone until he was replaced with another undergrad.

He switches to his iPhone in the cab en route to the airport, where he spends most of his savings account on a one-way ticket across the world.

By the time his plane lands in Japan almost a whole day later, Kusano’s eyes are red and he’s on the last email.

_I’ll be turning twenty-four this week. Jin is a horrible person and already made my cake, but I can’t touch it until Thursday. ): Attached is a picture._

If anyone asks, Kusano decides, he’ll tell them he spontaneously flew all the way to Japan for a two-tier buttercream cake with strawberries and hard chocolate drizzled all over.

It makes him smile when he thinks of the old Kusano, who probably would have done something crazy like that. He’s still wearing the expression as he exits the plane and grabs his bags, glancing around the airport at all of these people who look like him and speak the language he grew up on.

His Japanese accent flows as naturally as it had before, a completely different voice than the one he’s been using. He’s always been confused by the time difference and asks an attendant, who informs him that it’s almost five p.m. on Thursday, April ninth.

All this time he’s been thinking that it’s too late, but it turns out that he’s right on time. He remembers the way to Yamapi’s penthouse like he’d never left, like he still saw them every week and played Final Fantasy XI with Tegoshi while they were both bored in class. Like he still arm-wrestled with Massu and pranked Shige with Ryo and sang loud, random karaoke to lame boyband songs with Uchi.

By the time he’s caught up with himself, he’s at Yamapi’s door. He can hear the pre-party going inside, which is ironically playing the same shitty rap songs he heard last weekend in Dave’s room. Except that it feels like someone else who lived that life, not the person who’s standing here now.

That person wouldn’t have banged on the door loud enough to be heard over the music.

It’s Jin who answers the door, looking perfect as always and a little squinty-eyed already from more than just the beer in his hand, which all appears to drain from his system when he focuses on Kusano.

“Holy shit,” Jin says, in English, and Kusano can’t help but laugh.

Holding his head high he strides into the apartment, foreign and familiar at the same time, and leans his luggage against the wall as he toes off his shoes. He almost forgot.

Voices get progressively quiet as he steps into the room full of people, only some of whom he actually knows. For a second he wonders if the ones he does know even recognize him, with his short preppy hair and his facial features that have hardened into those of an adult.

It’s nothing at all like the slow-motion in a movie when someone who sounds dangerously like Koyama squeals his name and flings his arms around him, nearly knocking him over, followed by Tegoshi’s squeezing and Shige’s berating and Ryo’s fake punching. He can feel Massu’s smile from across the room, and when he looks over Ryo’s head he sees Uchi with sympathetic eyes and a baby on his lap.

He’s willing to bet that Uchi knows how he feels right now.

In the middle of all of this commotion is not him but Yamapi, who’s standing next to his delicious cake and staring at him with incredulous eyes that hold more emotion than all of his photoshoots combined.

It is at that exact second that a female replica of him, the adult version of the teenage girl Kusano knew before, takes the square of cake from her brother’s plate and smashes it straight on his nose.

Kusano nearly doubles over in laughter, which intensifies when he feels the sweet cream being smeared on his own face. He peeks through his sugary lashes to see an equally as caked Yamapi grinning at him, a glint of revenge in his eyes.

It’s good to be home.

> **=BONUS= Taka’s Story – And the Band Plays On**

The bar was about half packed, the crowd typical. Taka frowns as he picks at his hair in the dirty bathroom mirror – if they kept bringing in this type of low class, they would never make it.

This is his band, his love. He gave up his _life_ for it. His part-time job isn’t forever and his education is a backup plan. All of the countless nights writing lyrics and practicing in his bassist’s garage will pay off someday, he can _taste_ it.

He takes the stage with the others, putting on his cool face and adjusting the microphone. They aren’t getting paid tonight but that’s not the reason they’re here – they’re getting their name out there, offering to play for free at whatever places will take them so that more people will know who they are, who One OK Rock is.

Just before the song starts, the instrumental intro leading up to his words, he looks into the crowd and sees them.

It’s been five years, but nothing has changed but their age. He hasn’t kept in touch with any of them, doesn’t know any of their business anymore, but what’s on the surface is the same – Yamapi’s still shining, Ryo and Uchi are still taunting Shige, Tegoshi’s taking advantage of the free wifi on his laptop, Koyama’s running around taking and fulfilling drink orders, and Massu is digging into a basket of hot wings and blissfully ignoring them all.

Sometimes Taka misses their company, but it’s more important that he do his best to make his band successful. With no hesitation he sings his heart out, right on cue, sharing his passion with anyone who will listen and hoping that his old friends are amongst them.

After all, it was because of them that he had the courage to be himself and go after his dream.


End file.
